Rotating electrode closed treater for petroleum emulsions



Aug. 28, 1923. 1,466,208

- H. c. EDDY i ROTATING ELECTRODE CLOSED THEATER FOR PETROLEUM EMULSTLONS Filed Feb. 28. 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I v "INVENTOR. HAROLD C. EDDY,

Patent Aug-28, 1923.

1-: .1 K'OLD C. EDIDY, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGll'OR '10 PETROLEUM RECTI- FYI'NG COMP OF'GALIFORNIA, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORA- TION or cmro.

nora'rme firincrnenn cnosnn 'rnnarnn ron rn rnonnnn 'nmnnsrons.

Application nee reemsr at, 1921. Serial in. 448,550.

To all whom it. may concern. I

v Be it known that I, HAROLD C. Ennr' a citizen of the United States, residing at. s Angeles, county of Los Angeles, and State 5 of California, have invented a new and use ful Rotating Electrode Closed Treater for Petroleum Emulsions, of which the followa Specification. invention relates to devices used for ing-Wis y separating water from petroleum or other emulsions. It is a well known fact that petroleum emulsions when subjected to the action of an electric field tend to break up, the water particles agglomerating to form large masses which settle out readily by the action of gravity. It is also a well known fact that. in many oils the dehydrating action is facilitated by 'a movement of one of the electrodes or by an agitation of the material being treated.

It is a further well known fact that where electrodes upon which high electrical potentials are immersed in oil that there is considerable danger of electric discharges tak 1 a dehydrator which is especially adapted for.

use on petroleum emulsions and in which an agitation of the fluid is possible and 1n which one of the two electrodes is rotated.

A further object of my invention is to provide a dehydrator in which the fluid be ing treated is excluded from direct contact with the air, thus eliminating the danger of fire and conserving the li hter oil vapors.

A. further object of my invention is to provide means in such a treater for cutting off the current whenever air is admitted to the interior thereof.

Further objects and advantages will be made evident hereinafter. n

' Referring to the drawing which is for illustrative purposes only,

) Fig. 1 is a view of a treater embodying my invention, this treater being shown partly insection and-the electrical connections thereto being shown diagrammatically.

' Fig. 2 is a'section on a plane represented by the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. 1

Fig.3 is a diagram showing atypical installatlon.

Tn the form of the invention illustrated in these draw ngs 11 is a cylindrical tank which forms the grounded electrode and wh1ch has a tight bottom 12 and having a flared upper portion 13. Inside the flared portion 13 is a lip 14 to which a cover 15 is secured. Secured in the cover 15 is an insulator 16 having a central bore which may be lined with Babbitt metal 17. Secured by means of brackets; 18 in the flared top '13 are insulators 19 having caps 20 on which a spider 21 is carried. This spider 21 has a sleeve 22 which projects inside the insulator 19. Rotating inside the sleeve 22 and in the Babbitt metal 17 is a rod 30 which is supported by means of an insulator 31 from a rod 32 which is rotated by any suitable mechanism, not shown. Secured on the rod 30 are discs 35.-- The rod .30 and discs 35 form the live electrode.

An outlet pipe 40 controlled by a valve 41 is secured in the bottom of the treater and an inlet pipe 42 is connected into the treater near the top thereof. A pipe 15 is connected into the cover 15, and 'is connected with a pipe 46 which connects to a small open top vessel-47 in which a float 18 is placed. This float is connected by a link 49 with oneendv of a lever 50 which is sup ported on a bracket 51 from a tank 17. Carried by the lever 50 but insulated therefrom is a brush 55 which connects contacts 56 and 57 when the float is in its upper position. Electric current of low potential is supplied through wires 60 and 61, a volt meter 62 being connected across these wires and an ammeter 63 being .connected in the wire 61. A current limiting impedance 64 may be connected in the wire 60 and a'second volt 65 may be connected between the'wires 60 and 61 beyond the impedance 64. The wire 60- at a point 69 with the tank 11, the other side of the secondary 68 being connected to a wire passing through an insulated bushing 71 and connected with the spider 21 and thus with the rod 30 and the plates 35.

In practice I prefer to install the apparatus shown in Fig. 3 in which 100 is the treater'illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 and 101 is a trap tank connected at its bottom with the treater 100 by the pipe 40 and having a water outlet pipe 102 controlled by a valve 103 and a clean oil outlet pipe 104. The vessel 47 is raised above the top of the tank 11 to the level of the pipe 104. 2

The method of operation is as follows:

The tank 11 being em ty, the float 48 is in its lower position an the circuit to the primary 66 of the transformer 67 is interrupted atthe contacts 56 and 57. Emulsion is introduced through the pipe 43'filling the tank 11 and filling the trap tank 101; As soon as the level of the liquid in the trap tanklOl reaches the level of the pipe 104, oil passes upwardly through the pipe 45 into the tank 47 lifting the float 48. Since the pipe 45 is connected into the extreme top of the chamber formed by the treater 11 in the cover 15, any air or gas which may have been in the treater, passes ofl' through the pipe 45 before this pipe fills with oil. It is,

therefore, a. certainty that as soon as the float 48 lifts, that the space inside the tank 11 below the cover 15 is entirely filled with oil. The lifting of the float 48 completes the primary circuit through the contacts 56 and 57 and this circuit may be established at any time by energizing the wires 60 and 61: As soon as these WlTeS- areenergized, the low potential in the primary 66 of'the transformer 67 induces a high potential of say 11,000 volts in the secondary 68, this high potential being impressed between the moving electrode formed by the rod 30 and the discs 35 and the grounded electrode or tank 11. The discs 35 being rotated, the emulsion in the tank 11 is put in rotary motion, thus preventing short circuiting and insuring a rapid de-emulsification of the oil. Any gas or steam which may be formed in the treater passes oil through the pipe 45 which acts as'a vent. As soon as the body of oil in the treater 11 is thoroughly deemulsified which can ordinarily mined by a man skilled in the art by the reading of the ammeter 63 and the volt meter 65, the oil is started flowin at a re ular rate through the pipe 42, this oil belng introduced into the electric field between the electrodes and the water particles therein being agglomerated in this field-so that they will readilfl settle out in the'trap tank 101. The oil and water are delivered intothe' trap tank 101 in which a washing or separation takes place in accordance with standard practice. The water settling in be deterreeaeoe however, been used by others but these treaters are objectionable in that they are so constructed that they may at times be partially filled with air in which case an exidlosion results in the event of a discharge in this confined space.

By equipping my treater with the float 48 and its connected parts, I am able to pre-, vent both fires and explosions as no potential is impressed upon the treater except when the treater is entirely full and there is a suficient head on the treater to raise the oil through the pipes 45 and 46 and to raise the float 48.

It will be noted that the float 48 and its connected parts act to shut olf the flow of electric potential applied to the treater 1 whenever the level of the oil in the treater falls to a dangerous point. It will further be noted, however, that in efiect the treater is always held under a slight pressure due to the diflerence in head between the float level in the top' 15 of the treater. It will further be evident that whenever this presthe rotating mass, the water particles are thrown outwardly they! are drawn. downwardly. The insulator 16 is, therefore, at the dryest and and due to gravitatiom cleanest portion of the treater and insulator troubles are greatly reduced.

I claim as my invention: I -l 1. A treater for petroleum emulsions comprising a tank; a cover closing-the of said tank; means for maintaining a fiuiil pressure on said tank; a vent pipe through which gases are permitted to escape from said tank; means for producing an electric field in said tank; and means for interruptingsaid field whenever the fluid pressure is reduced in said tank.

2. A treater for petroleum emulsions '15 which gases are permitted to escape from said tank; alive electrode in said tank;

rodncing an electric field be-' which gases'are permitted to escape fromnae @mprising a tank; a cover closing the of said tank; means for maintaining a fluini pressure on saldtank; a vent pipe through said. tank; means for producing an electric ,field in. said tank; a vessel connected with said vent pipe and situated abovethe level a of said cover; a. liquid actuated float in said 'vessel; and means b which said float inter rupts said electric eld whenever the level of-liquid fallsin-said vessel. A

3. A treater for petroleum emulsions comprising a ta; a cover closing the to means for of'sa'id' tank; meansfor maintaining a fiui pressure'on said tank; a vent pipe through tween saide ectrode and said tank; a vessel connected with said vent pipeand situated above'the level of said cover; a liquid actu ated float in said vessel; and means by which said float interrupts-said electric field when 1 said tank; means for maintaining a uid ever the level of liquid falls in said vessel.

4. A treater for, petroleum emulsions comprising a tank; a cover closing the to of means for rotating said 'live" electrode; means for producing an electric .fieldbe tween said electrode and said tank;-. and

means for interrupting said field whenever the fluid pressure is reduced in said tank,

5. A treater for petroleum emulsions comprising a tank; a cover-closing the top of.

- said tank;' means for maintaining a fluid pressure on said tank; a vent pipe through. which gases are permitted to escape from said tank; a liveelectrode in said tank;

means for rotating said live electrode-;:-

means for producing an electric field between said electrode and said tank; a vessell connected with said vent ipe and situated above the level of said cover; a' liquid actuated float in said vessel; and means by which said float interrupts said electric field wllienever-the level of-liq'uid falls-in said ves- In testimon whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Angeles, Galifornia, this 19th day of Febma ,1921. I OLD'gfl. EDDY.- 

